ActiveStor, with its extremely fast file system and processing power, is usually found in scientific data centers like that at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The new enterprise version was announced Aug. 21.

The Parallel Network File System, or pNFS, is a complex proprietary technology that solves storage I/O bottlenecks—which are the bane of IT managers' existence—and accelerate customer deployments of parallel storage solutions. It enables direct parallel data transfer—as opposed to standard, narrower, one-lane file systems—between clients and storage devices.

pNFS is a critical component of NFS version 4.1, the first major performance upgrade to the widely deployed NFS in more than a decade. It is currently undergoing standards scrutiny. Typically, pNFS is used in system stacks with Linux, Apache (for Web servers) and other open-source software.

ActiveStor's new second-tier parallel storage package increases the aggregate bandwidth that can be supported on each Panasas storage shelf to about double that of the prior generation. Panasas claims that such a system thus can deploy up to 50 percent less storage, use up to 50 percent less power, require up to 50 percent less cooling and utilize up to 50 percent less floor space, due to the efficiencies of the enterprise ActiveStor.

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